


THE BLACKOUT (2020)

by PrideSkull



Category: Rizzoli & Isles
Genre: F/F, Murder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 06:00:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 9,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29896665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrideSkull/pseuds/PrideSkull
Summary: A storm, a murder, a lost heart...Jane sees herself confronted with a brutal crime scene, the outcome of a hidden secret of love and helplessness.
Relationships: Maura Isles & Jane Rizzoli, Maura Isles/Jane Rizzoli
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

_ "You just don't understand me!" A young woman slammed the door close, interrupting the heated discussion she had with her mother. Stepping outside, it was raining and the cool drops soon soothed her heated mind. Still angry, she walked on and the rain slowly soaked through her clothes, but it was warm and pleasant and did not bother her at all. Her red curls jumped up and down in rhythm as she hurried down the sidewalk, as a strange feeling overcame her. Briefly she turned around. Would her mother follow her? _

_ But no, no mother in sight. _

_ Instead there was that strange dark car with the broken light again. Hadn't she seen it just recently in front of the school...? _

_ Even though she had other problems right now, so she turned back around and moved on. _

It was Jane's cell phone that so abruptly woke her from sleep that morning. A quick glance was enough to see that it was still pitch black outside, making her grumble. Blindly she groped for the disturber of her peace and pressed the green receiver.

"Rizzoli." she muttered.

A murder. What else could it be? She cursed the day already and called herself a fool, for hoping that this week would be calmer.

"I'm on my way." She moaned as she sat up and yawned, hanging up. She stretched extensively, before getting up and shambling into her adjoining bathroom.

Unflatteringly, her own reflection looked back at her from the big mirror. The hair was disheveled, the skin sallow. The case resolution about the disappeared senator's son was clearly visible on her face, as well as the last weeks hard work was still in her limbs. The case had marked her.

A vacation would be something nice. Maybe, after this new case would be solved, she should go to the sea with Maura... Or to the mountains? She grinned. It had been a long time since the two of them had done anything that wasn't related to murder and manslaughter.

Quickly some cold water in the face let her spirits awake anew and after her daily morning routine and some strong coffee, she got dressed and drove a few minutes later with her car to the crime scene.

***

When Jane arrived, she immediately saw Maura's car, signalising her that she already was there. Very good.

The small shabby hotel was in the Leather District and was run by a chubby man in his mid-50s. 

**ARTHUR FITCH (53)**

Like the building, he had seen better days. 

Red burst veins on nose and cheeks, plus the red under-running eyes indicated an enormous alcohol consumption. If there had still been any doubts about his condition, they would have evaporated for sure, when Jane addressed the man and his bad breath almost knocked her off her feets.

"Are you not well, ma'm?" He inquired as Jane involuntarily staggered a step backward.

"No, it's fine." Jane pulled herself together. The best thing she could do now was to collect as much information as possible from him before he got a film break.

"You run the hotel here?"

"Yes, ma'm. Thirty years already, and it was my dad's before I took over." Jane couldn't help but notice that this filled him with a bit of pride. Especially when he immediately slammed a photo album on the counter and held some photos under her nose. "Here's where Dad just repainted the doors. And here's a picture of-"

"I see." Jane interrupted with a smile. "What can you tell me about last night?"

He seemed a bit perplexed, as if something had disturbed his rhythm and it took him a while before he found the new beat.

"The girl came, she paid... I only take prepayment, you must know. Enough trouble in the past with colliery bounce… Already my dad meant alw-"

"When did the girl come?" 

"I don't remember. Sometime between the news and... I don't remember. In any case, it hadn't been dark for long. Well, anyway, she paid, I gave her the key, all well and good. Then suddenly there's this mega blackout and I miss the drawing of the lotto numbers. I like to gamble, you know. My dad said alw-"

"A power outage?" Jane hadn't noticed any of that.

"Yes, ma'm. Shut down the whole town. Some lightning strike or something. Anyway, I headed out to see if everything was okay. The girl didn't respond to knocking, so I figured she was already sleeping and not bothered anyway. Took a quick look into the room though, she seemed fine. Closed the door quickly.”

“So you stepped into the room?” Jane raised one eyebrow. “You know that this is not allowed?”

“My hotel, my rules.” The men bursted out, not seeing any problem with his actions. “And this morning I discovered the mess when I asked her when she was going to pay for the next night. She had only paid for the first one and they don't even know what pro-"

"Thank you." Jane nodded graciously. "Which room is it?"

"Number 6." Grumbled the owner. 

Let's take a look at the "mess" then.


	2. Chapter 2

_ She would not give easily in and return home just because of a little bit of rain. Her mother should see that she was serious! _

_ Fortunately, she had picked up something there. A hotel... cheap, no questions asked. Just what she needed. She would call Nancy. Yeah, right. She would! _

_ The small shabby hotel was tucked away in a side street in the heart of the Leather District.  _

_ As expected, there were no problems. She gave a false name, the man accepted this without even looking up. He handed her the key and immediately turned back to the small tube TV in the back office. _

_ She went to her room, closed the door and sat down on the creaky bed with a sigh, pulling out her cell phone; Alex was saved as a favorite and it took less than three seconds for her girlfriend to answer. _

_ "Alex, I talked to my mother..." Sobbed the girl. Suddenly, out of nowhere, tears rolled down her cheeks. "... And I told her about us!" _

_ "A-And what did she say?" Alex's voice sounded concerned. _

_ "She wasn't too thrilled.... We had a fight and ... And then I ran away..." She mumbled softly into her cell phone. _

_ "You are what? Where are you? I'm coming to you right now." _

_ The girl's heart rejoiced and accelerated its beat. Alex could be relied on for once. She grinned as she gave Alex the address and hung up. _

_ "Alex... My Alex." She smirked and the tears had dried. _

The small room was filled with the ferruginous smell that suggested a high blood loss, but Jane could not detect a large brine at first glance, but she would take care of that later. Maura was already kneeling over the corpse, forming the only spot of color in this dreary place. Like a single rose in a withered garden.

Jane stopped by her side, looking down on the dead girl, or rather at the small puny remnant that was left of her. How Jane hated such days. The sight alone made her doubt humanity once again. 

The body of the young girl was naked and frighteningly pale. Not a drop of blood seemed to have remained in her. All extremities had been severed from the torso, possibly with the axe the killer had driven into the wall with all his might. Next to it a message. "Leda is dead."

Maura smiled when she saw Jane and straightened up. Her once again extremely chic outfit now really made her shine and Jane had to swallow briefly.

"Jeez..." She murmured, and Maura pretended not to hear, as always, and was secretly pleased that the choice she made today was so well received.

"What do we have here?" Jane had regained her composure, and Maura, too, instantly switched to analytic mode.

"At first glance, the victim is between 18 and 20, of caucasian descent. The extremities were quite roughly and hastily separated from the torso."

"Probably with that one...?" Jane nodded toward the axe.

"I don't want to commit to that, precisely because something else made me wonder."

"And that would be, Dr. Isles?"

"You will receive my full report when I have completed the autopsy, detective Rizzoli." Maura said firmly and with a wave of her hand she signaled that the body could now be taken to pathology. "I'll see you later." Maura smiled briefly and Jane looked after her as she left the room behind the gurney.

"The things people are capable of. Unbelievable. The victim wasn't carrying any papers, but we've already gone through the missing persons ads. So far, no hits." Korsak had suddenly appeared next to Jane. He didn't look particularly well rested either, and Jane didn't miss the way his expression darkened when he read the inscription on the wall.

"Does that mean anything to you?" Jane asked, nodding toward the wall.

"Yes, I do. But that was so long ago... That can't be-"

"What?"

"When I was brand new to Homicide, there was this guy. He was cutting up young women and carving their names on the wall. But he got caught and got a life sentence."

"This one, maybe?" Jane held up the newspaper she had snatched from the dessert table. Emblazoned on the front page was a photo of an older man.

**'Ted Jefferson (55): Boston girl slaughterer back on the loose.'**

"Excuse me?" Korsak took the newspaper in disbelief and studied the article at length. "How come I didn't notice any of this? And this wip here is from Monday!" He grumbled to himself and turned away. Jane took advantage of this to take a closer look at the crime scene. There were traces of blood on the floor, but they were not large enough. There should have been far more blood on the ugly carpet during the dismemberment. 

She turned to the bed, taking a closer look at the bedspread that was half-open and smelling damp. When Jane gloved it open, she recognized the victim's pale pink prints. That meant the killer had washed the victim and then placed her in the bed. But why? Jane turned toward the bathroom. Here, the smell of blood was stronger, even though nothing was visible to the human eye.

"Have forensics take a closer look at this." She said to the grumbling Korsak, who was still not over the fact that this article had escaped him. And yet this had been his first real case at the time!

Her gaze wandered around the room. The clothes of the murdered lay thrown over a chair. A look in the closet told her that this was all the murdered woman had with her. Frost would have to look at the cell phone on the nightstand later. Who had she called last?

Jane was about to leave the room to find out where this Jefferson was currently hanging out, but then something shiny jumped into her eye. There was something lying directly between the nightstand and the bed. Jane bent down and took out a pair of tweezers. But this was not a standard pair of tweezers. They were larger and the serial number was scratched out. 

Very strange.


	3. Chapter 3

"Leda Lefèvre, 19th residence in Bay Village. Her mother stated that she left the house last night after an argument."

"A fight?" Jane interrupted Korsak. She stretched out in her chair and enjoyed her second coffee of the morning. At least something good in this evil world. "What was it about?" She took a few hearty sips and was more than eager to hear the answer.

"The mother had a rather spongy answer, something about Leda confessing and her not being happy about it." Korsak answered and studied his notes.

"According to the cell phone, her last call was to a contact named Alex." Frost interjected.

"Though the mother stated that her daughter's boyfriend's name was Christopher Black." Korsak continued. "Quarterback at the university Leda attended. I already ran him through the database. Good kid from a fine home on scholarship. Doesn't seem to have his fists under control too well though. Reported for assault in February 2010. Beat up a classmate for..." Korsak paused. "Because he thought he was looking at his girlfriend at the time."

"Very jealous then." Jane said and straightened up. Slowly she walked to the pin board where a photo of the victim was hanging. She was pretty and radiant. Nothing like what Jane had seen in the hotel room.

"Let's imagine for a moment. Leda meets with her lover Alex in the hotel. Christopher gets wind of it. He catches them both and then..."

"Would we be missing a body." Maura was suddenly standing in the doorway. "Statistically, jealous partners kill the counterparty, not the object of desire."

"Anything new?" Jane was happy to see Maura. And by her appearance, she realized that Maura must’ve discovered something important, otherwise, she would hardly make her way to the office.

"I'd be happy to show you in the lab." Maura replied, waving her files. Jane immediately nodded and followed Maura into the elevator. What kind of perfume was she using today? It was different than usual... Somehow more intoxicating.

Maura led the way and opened the door for Jane.

"The victim..."

"Leda Lefèvre was her name." Jane quickly interrupted her. She knew how much Maura loved completeness.

"There were a few hours between the murder and the dismemberment." Maura studied your report. "Also, the cut on your throat is clean and straight, quite the opposite of the amputations, which were rather amateurish."

"So there were two perpetrators?" Jane's gaze roamed over the dead woman. So young. No one deserved to die so young, the whole life still ahead.

"Maybe." Answered Maura.

"Her boyfriend was a quarterback and not very squeamish when it came to putting sidekicks in their place."

"So he should have been able to muster the necessary strength." Maura murmured and again studied the cuts that had severed the legs.

"But our prime suspect remains Ted Jefferson." Jane leaned against the wall. "It's very much his pattern."

"I heard about it." Maura glanced at the same newspaper Jane had found in the hotel room. "However, his victims were always personal. Was there a connection between Jefferson and the victim?"

"I'll know after the interview." Jane pushed herself away from the wall. She almost slipped out of the autopsy room when Maura's voice called her back. 

"Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"

It was a simple question. Nothing embarrassing. Nevertheless, Jane's heartbeat accelerated and she swallowed hard before she could answer.

"Yeah, sure, of course." And already she was gone, praying that Maura didn't hear her heart beating so hard in her chest.


	4. Chapter 4

Jefferson sat sullenly in the chair in the interrogation room, gazing dumbly at his wrists. The metal figure eight bound him to the table in front of him and prevented him from moving even an inch unnecessarily.

**TED JEFFERSON (58)**

"Finally, he's come down a bit." Remarked Korsak as Jane entered the adjoining room. "Made quite a racket and could hardly be contained."

"Tell me about it." Frankie pointed to his black eye that Jefferson had given him in the fight. Frost was standing next to him, showing no scrape. Jane noticed that, too.

"I'll call Mom right now and have her pick you up and stop by the butcher first. Weren't steaks on sale today?" Jane grinned and Frankie rolled his eyes.

"Go ahead and make fun of me!" He grumbled and disappeared mumbling. "...You'll see.... I'm a detective..."

"Don't be so hard on him." Frost grinned and showed his smile that Jane liked so much. It was honest and that had become such a rare commodity in this day and age. "Better save it for that one." He nodded to Jefferson sitting on the other side of the glass. "His evidence aide had tipped us off where to find him. Poker every Friday and it just happened to be three blocks from the crime scene. Said he'd been there all night until the wee hours of the morning. One of the other players, however, said that he had been gone for a few hours in between. Jefferson said he ran out of money and had to get some to keep going. No witnesses. He won't say anything else about it."

"Sounds more than flimsy, the whole story. Jefferson plays poker and leaves the game for a few hours and, poof, a young woman is dead. I wonder if that's how he had to work out his losing streak." Korsak's gaze was fixed firmly on the suspect.

"We'll know soon enough." Jane opened the door and sat down across from Jefferson, who didn't even raise his eyes.

"When can I go?" He grumbled.

"If you tell us what happened last night." Jane eyed him throughout. The years in prison had not passed by without leaving their mark on him. Physical as well as mental, Jane had to conclude when Jefferson looked up. She was surprised.

His look was not angry or wrathful. Or even malicious. 

He was just tired. A kind of exhaustion one developed after many years in prison. Jane had observed this many times. 

Had this been the reason for his dismissal? 

"Do you know why you are here?" She inquired.

"I had nothing to do with it." He sounded exhausted. "I was playing poker, nothing more, officer."

"Detective." Jane corrected him. The same thing over and over again!

"Be that as it may, this is all long behind me. I didn't do anything to that girl. Look somewhere else, it wasn't me, and that's all I'll say about it."

"If you would wish to have a lawyer...?"

"What for? If you were guilty once, you are always guilty. That's how the rule of law works. Even a fucking lawyer can't help me there..." Suddenly his eyes searched for hers. “Please, it wasn’t me and I don’t want to go back there…”

Jane resigned. She would probably get nothing more out of him and her gut feeling told her that she was digging in the wrong place.

"Did you find out anything about the last contact the victim called?" She asked Frost as she stepped out of the interrogation room.

"Yes, this was a surprise! Alex, sorry, Alexandra Wilde is the name. But contrary to all expectations, it's not the victim's lover, but a fellow student who had taken some classes with the victim."

"Alex Wilde. When can I talk to her?"

"Both have been summoned to the Bureau for tomorrow morning."

"Both of them?"

"Yes, Alex Wilde and Christopher Black. Maybe they can shed some light on what's going on."

"Maybe." Jane glanced at the clock. She should be on her way soon if she didn't want to miss dinner at Maura's. "Okay, more tomorrow then. I'm going to call it a night."


	5. Chapter 5

Jane unlocked the door with the spare key Maura had given her a while ago.

"I hope I'm still in time?" She said, closing the door behind her. "I just grabbed a six-pack from the gas station." 

No reaction. Silence. 

Jane went to the kitchen and placed her purchase on the counter. Maura had had it delivered and had already opened it. And this could not have been too long ago, because the food was still steaming. Nevertheless, no trace of her was to be discovered.

"Hello?" But again no answer and slowly Jane began to worry. This was not Maura's way at all. At that moment a key jingled in the lock behind her. Hastily she turned around and to her delight saw Maura's reddish-blond mop of hair just stepping through the door. 

Maura looked at her with her hazel eyes in happy surprise. "I thought I'd get another little something." She held up a bag, the proportions of which indicated that it contained a bottle of wine. And as well known from Maura, it was one of the expensive variety. "But I see you've already supplied yourself." Her gaze wandered to the beer on the counter.

"It's not like you not to have a good droplet in the house. But so is this disorganization." Jane tried to deflect from the topic, but Maura countered instantly.

"This has nothing to do with  _ disorganization by  _ a long shot. This 'drop' as you like to call it, was hard to come by. It takes time to get hold of it."

"So-so." Grinned Jane. "A special vintage?"

"You could say that." Smirked Maura, thinking of the Petrus, grown in Pomerol, vintage '76 she had purchased. Jane's birth year. So of course the wine was special!

"What are you grinning at, Maura?" Jane teased, taking the bottle from her. "I'm hungry! What's for dinner today?" Without waiting for an answer, she turned toward the living room. "There's a game on somewhere, isn't there?" Jane grabbed one of the plates and slipped off her shoes as she settled on the sofa. Why was she so nervous today? Just because she was alone with Maura again? I-is it because of...? Because of what had happened the other day? Actually, it had only been a small thing... Very insignificant, yes, yes. Jane immediately dispelled the thought. She then flipped through all the channels looking for the game, but couldn't find it. "There was one on today." She grumbled as Maura settled down next to her.

"Maybe we should settle down at the table after all." Maura looked at the food table where her plate was already placed. 

'Typical Jane' thought Maura and had to smile. She almost ate the delicious antipasti Sgombro in Olio d'Oliva just like that on the sofa. Good thing she had saved them from that! She would have liked to pat herself on the back, but...

"What's that???" Jane had clearly taken the first bite and once again without waiting for her.

"Sgombro in Olio d'Oliva."

"Scorbuse in what?" Jane swallowed hard. 'Now a beer to wash it down would be great' she thought, but fell silent even in thought when she saw Maura's look. "Fun, fun. Full of yum, whatever it is." Smiling, she forced down another bite. Maybe she could get another burger later. Assuming she survived this, but taking a closer look at Maura's expression, Jane's chances were slim.

"Is there anything new in the case about the young girl?" 'Very good, she's changing the subject!' Jane inwardly whooped.

"I interrogated our prime suspect today. But something bothered me tremendously." Jane rose and went to the counter to open a beer. Maura's gaze followed her closely and had lost all sternness. Rather, her gaze seemed to literally absorb Jane's words and process the information. Jane understood immediately: Maura had switched to inquisitive mode. 

And if she listened very carefully, she could hear the little cogs turning like crazy.

"He didn't do it." 

She could not say more. It was her feeling and she saw how Maura understood it. She nodded. 

"Then the killer must still be out there." Maura said, and just then Jane's cell phone rang.


	6. Chapter 6

_ "You sure are quick." Leda grinned as she opened the door for Alex. Her hair was soaked from the rain and hung in thick strands in her face. _

_ "What a mess of weather. Typical for you to pick the stormiest night of the year to run away." Alex wiped her hair from out of her face and looked at Leda with the most beautiful blue eyes the latter had ever seen.  _

_ It was those eyes. They had caused her all this trouble and yet she didn't regret anything.  _

_ "Have you seen the news? It's storming so much that trees have already been uprooted. Be glad I got here in one piece!" _

_ "As a matter of fact, I am very much." Leda pulled her to her and gently her lips touched those of the surprised Alex.  _

"How did it turn on?" Jane's gaze was numb, dull, and not nearly testifying to her inner turmoil. Before her sat the half-dressed Jefferson slumped over. His face blue-underlined, his eyes half out of their sockets, he stared at the ground and yet saw nothing. The death struggle had probably turned out harder than he might have imagined. 

He had hanged himself from the radiator in his examination cell, where he had been temporarily taken.

"He tore his shirt into strips and then braided a rope out of it." In stark contrast to Jane, Korsak felt no sympathy. "The officers said he's been very quiet lately, which is why they took his handcuffs off."

"Death by strangulation." Maura stated, rising as lithely as a feline predator. 'Man, she's really good at that,' Jane thought. That's why she didn't notice Maura's gaze searching hers and looking at her in wonder. "No 'Dr. Isles, strangulation? Do you really want to jump the gun on that?' Comment from you Jane?" Maura smirked.

"I-I was just looking for the right words." Jane stuttered, but regained her composure in a flash. "But your selection is pretty accurate."

She turned to Korsak, perhaps just to escape Maura's scrutinizing gaze. "Is forensics done here yet?" 

"She wasn't there at all." He replied, confused, his gaze shifting back and forth between Maura and Jane. 'Where did this strange mood come from so suddenly?" He asked himself.

"Why not?" Jane asked immediately. Her sleuthing kicked in and made her instantly wide awake.

"The officer heard strange noises coming from the cell. When he checked, Jefferson had probably just suffocated."

"And the cameras?" Jane pointed to the one pointed directly at the cell door.

"The security cameras in that part of the building are down. But Officer Holler; a good guy, know him and his family for a few years, confirms there was no one else in the room."

"Have forensics come in." Jane exchanged a meaningful look with Maura, and when Korsak tried to object, they recited in sonorous symmetry, "Until all the evidence have been secured, all the facts have been clarified, all the witnesses have been interrogated, and there is even the slightest doubt, the location of a body is considered a crime scene."


	7. Chapter 7

_ "Did you see that, too?" Alex pushed herself off the mattress and looked at the window. She could have sworn that something had just moved there. Now, however, only the black depth of the night was visible again. The window probably faced the backyard, because not even the light of a lantern illuminated the surroundings, even though they were on the first floor. _

_ "What do you mean?" Leda lay under her, naked, just like herself. She felt the hot breath of her counterpart on her skin and pleasant shivers came over her. _

_ "I-It's okay, I guess I just made a mistake." She reassured Leda and herself immediately. Maybe she really had only imagined it. Could she be blamed for hallucinating when the most beautiful girl of the university was lying with her now? Especially with her! She still could not believe it.  _

_ "It's all right." She kissed Leda and stroked her curly red hair. She loved every strand of it and the smell it gave off. Like a sunny morning, somewhere in the country, quiet contemplative.  _

_ She stroked Leda's cheek, counted each freckle, and lost herself in the depths of her sea green eyes. _

_ Alex was sure: Nothing in this world could destroy this happiness. _

Don't let it get to you,' Jane muttered in her mind, looking at the large flip chart with the evidence and facts she had gathered so far. In her hands she held the now final autopsy report Maura had prepared. The last time she had only learned a few details, but now the entire horrific fate of the young woman lay laid out in her hands. 

Maura's report was very comprehensive and also revealed a previously less noticed detail. 

The victim was missing an organ.

The heart.

Jane swallowed hard.

"Let's summarize: The victim leaves her parents' house after a quarrel and lodges herself in a shabby hotel. The only person she calls is a certain Alex, a fellow student. Jefferson is just a few blocks away." Begins Korsak. "What did they talk about? And more importantly, what happened to the victim then?"

"The hotel owner stated that he had checked the room after the power failure. And that's when the victim was still asleep in his bed." Frost continued.

"Shouldn't he have seen the carved message?" Korsak interrupted him. "This one wasn't exactly unmissable."

"According to the report, there were traces of the victim's tissue in the carved message. Maura also said that some time had passed between the girl's death and the cutting. So it's possible the body was still in one piece when the hotel owner checked, and ergo the message wasn't on the wall yet."

"After all, that would mean that the perpetrator killed her and then disappeared, only to come back hours later and finish his work."

"And what's the deal with the heart?" Frost asked. "A trophy, perhaps?"

"Jefferson didn't collect trophies. At least not tangible ones. His trophies consisted of the screams of the victims, their blood, their tears..." Korsak fell silent and inside he felt the satisfaction that this monster was no longer among the living.

"Mr. Black and Miss Wilde have just arrived." Frankie was suddenly standing in the doorway.

"Let's listen to your stories sometime then." Jane said, folded up the file and went on her way.


	8. Chapter 8

_ Fists loudly banged against the door of the hotel room. Alex was startled out of her sleep. A quick glance at the clock told her that she and her sweetheart had only been asleep for half an hour.  _

_ Leda had also woken up next to her in the meantime. The rumbling at the door continued and was now also accompanied by a voice. _

_ "Open the damn door! I know you're in there!" _

_ Alex looked at Leda. None other than Black was just standing there in front of the door and wanted to come in. The Black. The very Black who had done this indescribable thing to Leda. Allegedly out of love... _

_ "Go, I will speak with him." Leda began to get dressed. _

_ "No, I can't let you do that!" _

_ "Please." Leda smiled. "You come back in an hour ok? I love you and I will settle this here and now." _

_ "But..." _

_ "Nothing but." Leda opened the window while Black was still rioting behind her. "In an hour." Reluctantly Alex got out, not wanting to leave her beloved alone in such a situation. But she only said "I'll manage this. For us.", kissed her and then closed the window. Alex heard Leda open the door and Black enter. His voice was a little upset, but controlled. No matter what Leda said, she would stay close. She crossed the backyard and leaned against the wall under a shelter.  _

_ 02:36. Already so late. Your gaze wandered while your eyelids grew more and more tired. Whether a broken headlight was still permissible at all. In general, very negligent to drive in this weather. The driver probably had to do something really urgent. Her eyelids became heavier and heavier and finally, surrounded by the soft pattering of the rain, Alex nodded off.  _

_ And this she should never forgive herself for. _

Christopher Black sat in the chair and looked around indifferently.

"You're making me miss an important training session." He snapped at Jane as she entered the room with Korsak.

"I guess so, and?" Korsak grinned and sat down, while Jane also took a seat. 

**CHRISTOPHER BLACK (21)**

The young man opposite her was one of those young ambitious sportsmen with an exaggerated ego, against whom she had always felt an aversion. She briefly let her gaze wander over him. Jane immediately noticed something and when she looked at Korsak, she realized that this little detail had not escaped his attention either. But before this came up, some other questions had to be clarified.

"Mr. Black, do you know this girl?" Jane slid a picture of Leda across the table. Black just cast a disparaging glance at it. 

"Yeah, I used to bang her." He said dryly. "Why, is she accusing me or what? No matter what she claims, it's a lie."

"She's dead." Jane had to pull herself together to keep from beating the hell out of the little snoot with the lacquered hairdo. She was even more stung by the fact that Black showed no reaction at all. His gaze remained indifferent.

"Fine, and what do I have to do with it?" He replied. Jane's patience almost burst and she was about to rise, when Korsak spoke up.

"You were Homecoming King&Queen." He also slid a photo over here with an overjoyed beaming Leda on it. 

"I already told you that there was something going on for a short time." Black replied irritably, and Jane felt it begin to boil inside her.

"And until when did this 'briefly' go?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Why don't you answer?"

Black was silent, but his gaze was hateful. Jane saw him clench his fists.

"Are you under any substances?" Korsak asked, basing his statement on the strange pupil reaction that he and his colleague had noticed immediately.

"Without my lawyer, I'm not saying anything anymore!" Black rose jerkily, but was immediately pushed back into his chair by one of the police officers present. "Don't touch me!" He immediately retorted, but the policeman's grip did not loosen.

"We're done here." Jane rose and left the room, closely followed by Korsak.

"What a... GRRRRRRR." Jane clenched her fists.

"When someone like him, who is already dealing with aggression issues as it is, also takes drugs, he becomes unpredictable." Korsak looked through the glass at Black, who was still shouting heatedly. "Something like that can quickly turn someone into a death machine."

"And Leda may have had to suffer the consequences for that." Jane stated soberingly.


	9. Chapter 9

_ Alex awoke as a puddle felt its way towards her and began to pull her clothes towards her. It stormed even more than before and she rose, still shaky on her feet. _

_ "Crap." She muttered, glancing at the clock. "God, so late already." Not long now and the sun would be up. She pulled her hood deep into her face and hurried to the window she had climbed out of just a few hours ago. She was about to knock when she noticed that the glass had shattered.  _

_ Slowly your senses awoke again and immediately the strange heavy smell rose to her nose.  _

_ "Iron?" She wondered and pushed the curtain aside. Just at that moment, a flash of lightning illuminated the scene and Alex inevitably had to realize that the smell she had noticed was literally crawling out of the window from the womb of her beloved. The whole room was filled with it! _

_ She stumbled backwards  _ *the pale body* _ , the curtain blew open again. Was there someone there? Alex's gaze blurred as she turned in horror and disappeared into the night. _

Alex's insides were troubled. How could all this have happened? She swallowed hard and held back her tears with all her might, which she had not succeeded in doing for a second the previous night while hiding in her room.

The interrogation room was cool where she sat. She shivered slightly and her gaze wandered again to the door. Could they please finally come! She had better things to do than to sit here and be idle! Somehow she had to atone for her guilt.

When Jane entered the room she saw a young attractive woman with pitch black hair who immediately raised her eyes. Beautiful eyes' she thought inevitably. Not as beautiful as Maura's, of course, but also very interesting. In general, her charisma was somehow special. Jane couldn't quite place it, but she instantly felt a certain kind of connection. 

**ALEXANDRA WILDE (19)**

"Miss Wilde?" Jane settled down. This time she was alone; Korsak was still tending to Black. "You know why you're here?"

"Yes, of course." Answered the girl immediately. "Leda was m-murdered..."

"When was the last time you saw the victim?" Jane didn't miss the way her counterpart flinched when she used the term 'victim'.

"She called me yesterday." Answered Wilde hesitantly. "We talked briefly. She said she had run away."

"Do you know why?"

"No, she didn't say why."

"What else did she say?" Jane persisted.

"She said she felt like she was being followed. But she didn't say exactly why. I had to study, too, and soon had to hang up."

"I see." Jane pulled out a photo of Black. "Does this face mean anything to you?"

"Just from college, maybe. But I never had anything to do with him."

When the interrogation was over, Jane escorted Wilde out of the room and Korsak just came out of the adjacent room with Black. Jane did not miss how Wilde flinched when Black's gaze met her. And she couldn't blame her, because the look was hateful and bristled with contempt.

“We will contact you if any more questions pop up.” Jane said, as she opened the door for the younger girl, which just nodded as she passed by, obviously deep in thoughts.

And indeed, Alex left the department and her brain rattled. Overthinking everything and trying to remember every detail that came to her mind. As suddenly, something popped up, making her stop in the middle of the way. The car. What did it remind her of? She had seen it before, but where? She had been thinking all night. She walked six blocks before it slowly cleared. Wasn't that when Leda...? She strained. Yes, it had. It had been him. She immediately turned around and turned her steps in the opposite direction. She would make that bastard pay.

When Jane's cell phone rang, she already knew that this would not mean anything good, especially as Maura's began to vibrate opposite her too and their eyes met. Instantly they took the calls and simultaneously heard the message about a new victim.


	10. Chapter 10

_ The car drove down the narrow alley at excessive speed and braked abruptly when two men passed by at the end of the alley, talking. _

_ They didn't notice the car that now lingered silently in the small alley, watching them. When they were out of sight, the driver relaxed and his fists, which had been tightly clenched around the steering wheel, relaxed noticeably. His gaze wandered to the rearview mirror, where a beautiful but cold and expressionless pair of blue eyes gazed back at him. He swallowed hard. He had not wanted all this to happen. Everything had gotten out of hand. _

_ The door of the car opened and the body of a young woman was gently hoisted up and layed on the ground. _

_ "I'm sorry." Murmured the man as he turned away and got back into his car. it took him a moment, then he started the engine. _

"You've got to be kidding me!" More than anything, the rage inside Jane prevailed when she saw the dead girl, as she approached the scenery and Maura was already securing the first evidence.

"Death occurred less than 2 hours ago. Neck fracture. It was very quick." Maura rose and looked sadly at Jane, as she knew how her friend felt. Two dead suspects in such a short period of time. Deaths that might have been prevented. 

Maura knew that Jane would definitely blame herself for it, even if it wasn’t her fault.

And it was the case, as Jane went through the interrogation in a flashback, asking herself, had she missed something? What had Wilde concealed from her, and why?

"I wonder if Black had anything to do with it." Frost suddenly stood next to Jane, snapping her out of her thoughts. "His reaction to her was actually pretty clear. We should find out why."

"Take him to the police station." Jane's gaze was still fixed on the dead woman who looked at her with cold eyes. Death had not harmed her beauty, she was still radiant. Even if it was now a frightening beauty. Jane had to turn away and her eyes met those of Maura. The red head smiled encouragingly at her and Jane's mood instantly rose a little. It wasn't much, but enough to keep her from falling into a deep hole. Maura could be counted on like always. 

Her Maura.

What would she ever do without her?


	11. Chapter 11

Black sat in his chair just as emotionless as at the beginning of the last interrogation. But now to his right sat a lawyer dressed in the finest Armani thread and of imposing stature. He was looking at his gold Rolex and there was no doubt for a second that it was not an original.

"Good afternoon." Greeted the lawyer surprisingly friendly and smiled at the perplexed Jane. "Richard Mason my name, I'll be handling the client's defense." He said and slid his business card across the table to Jane and Korsak, who just sat down.

"Is your client more talkative today?" 'Or more respectful,' Jane preferred to say.

"This depends. We are, of course, anxious to assist the police as best we can." He smiled again, exposing a perfect string of pearly white teeth. 'Was this guy out of a test tube or what?" wondered Jane.

"I see." Jane twisted and turned the business card. High-quality paper. Bold printing. Not the kind of business cards you just made at the copy store around the corner. Korsak's gentle nudge in the ribs brought her out of her investigator mode and back to reality.

"Did you know Alexandra Wilde?"

"No."

"Yesterday in the hallway, you seemed to recognize her very well." Intervened Korsak.

"Oh, is that her name?" Black conceded.

"Excuse me?"

"What's the deal with the lady?" The lawyer spoke up.

"She was a good friend to the first victim." Jane said and didn't miss how Black's gaze suddenly darkened, making the lawyer give him a look that admonished him. Jackpot!

"And she was murdered last night." Even now, Jane didn't miss the brief relief, even joy, in Black's face. Even though it might have been only a second, before his face was motionless again.

"That's tragic." Mason opined. "However, I don't know what connection my client has to this as he spent last night with his family."

"Exactly, the evening. This says nothing about the night." Jane was about to continue when Frankie opened the door.

"Can you hold on a second?" He said softly and waved an envelope around.

Jane rose and nodded apologetically to Korsak.

"What is it?" Jane's eyes were already on the envelope long before Frankie handed it to her.

"This was dropped off below. No stamp, no postmark." But emblazoned on it in large letters was 'EXTREMELY IMPORTANT'.

"Handed in by who?" Jane asked as she opened the envelope and saw handwriting she had only recently seen. Someone had written down their testimony in that very handwriting.

"It was dropped in the mailbox, I don't know by whom..."

"Mhmmm..." Jane was no longer listening to him anyway. She was already too deeply engrossed in the lines in front of her.

  
  
  


The door to the interrogation room banged loudly as Jane entered the room. She didn't know herself why this very case touched her so much, but she slammed the letter on the table.

"Do you still deny knowing Alexandra Wilde? The girl who knew about your rape of Leda Lefèvre? The girl who...?"

"...got what she deserved?" Black interrupted her and straightened up as well.

"Don't!" The lawyer wanted to intervene, but Black had already taken the letter.

He began to feel the pain and a vein in his neck began to throb badly. But he calmed down all by himself and took his seat again.

"You don't understand. I'm a quarterback. I'm the best. Nobody just says no to me." He spoke calmly.

"Otherwise you what, wake up killed?" 

"No! I wanted Leda. I really liked her, the more it hurt me that she didn't want me. When I did that I wasn't in my right mind..."

"I think they've had enough..." Mason was about to say something, but Black interrupted him. He crossed his arms and mumbled something like 'Well, then it's your own fault'.

"She didn't want you?" Jane repeated.

"I was at the hotel that night. I talked to Leda. I...I apologized. But I didn't kill her! When I left, she was still alive!"

"When was that?"

"The power had just gone out. I had to check on my car. Streets were empty, but some weird guy had parked me shut. But he was in the car and he moved right away."

"Do they remember what he looked like?"

"It was too dark..."

"What did the letter say?" Korsak inquired as they left the room and Jane wordlessly handed him the letter, so he could read it himself.

  
  
  


_ Detective Rizzoli, _

_ I do not know why I am writing these lines to you, but my feeling tells me that you will understand me. That you will understand us. _

_ Should I no longer be alive (and I hope not, but I am pursuing a theory today.... I have a debt to pay...), at least someone should know about our story. _

_ I met Leda in class back then. She was always so funny and charming and had the best grades. Quite in contrast to me. I was still quite new at the university and I didn't really have any friends yet. But it wasn't even three days before Leda had already declared the seat next to mine to be hers.  _

_ At first I found her mega pushy, but that quickly subsided and we became very good friends. Very very good friends.  _

_ Like sisters, we looked out for each other. And at some point, I don't even remember why, it just happened. Leda kissed me. Right over the math problems and.... and I hoped it would never end. She loved me and I loved her and then THAT happened. _

_ I wasn't there, I didn't feel well that night, but Leda went to that party and when she came home she cried bitterly. Christoph Black had done this to her!  _

_ The pig. I wanted to go right away, but she held me back, she was so ashamed. She never drank normally. _

_ We went to a doctor who examined her completely. He even took blood from her which I found a little strange. But she was healthy and the doctor invoked confidentiality. Actually he’s a surgeon or something.  _

_ Anyway, we could soon go home again. But there was that Chris Black again. He just wouldn't give up. _

_ Weeks passed. _

_ Leda told her mother about us and then ran away and called me. I'm sorry I lied, but we didn't just talk on the phone. I came over and we spent half the night together. Then Black showed up. _

_ I left and … I just remember a car I saw at the hotel. I saw it before and now I remember where. It was at the doctors office and I will go and talk to him, after all I...I have brought heavy guilt upon myself. I couldn't protect my beloved. Without her...  _

_...I have nothing. _


	12. Chapter 12

The small doctor's office across town was a bit out of the way and close to campus. A fresh scent rose to Jane's nose as she stepped through the front door with Korsak, looking around intently. Newspaper articles and diplomas littered the walls.

**'Dr. James R. Brighter youngest graduate'**

**'J.R. Brighter, the new star in the surgeon's sky'**

**'First transplant of state succeeded by Dr. J.R. Brighter'.**

These were just a few headlines that Jane deciphered. However, it did not escape her that these articles had been published at regular intervals for several years. However, almost a year ago they came to an abrupt end. Why would such a renowned surgeon open his own practice, since he surely had a well-paid job in a hospital?

What had happened only a year ago?

"My receptionist said you had some questions for me? How can I help you?” The middle-aged man with the surprisingly graying temples shook hands with both investigators and sat down again “Thought I must say right away that I'm on my way, because I'm expected urgently!".

"You don't practice surgery anymore, though?" Jane asked as she sat down as well.

"No, no, only in particularly tricky cases now. I-I had to cut back to.... I didn't have time for 48-hour shifts on call anymore."

"Yet they were quite successful." Korsak had not sat down and instead examined the articles also hanging on the walls here.

"M-My daughter. After the death of her mother, she is the only one left to me.... When a serious ailment was diagnosed in her, I had no other choice..." His gray eyes looked sadly at his own hands folded on his lap. "She's such a good girl, you must know." Now he smiled and looked at a picture that stood directly across from him on the desk. He turned it around so that our two investigators could also take a look at it. 

"Very pretty." Jane remarked, looking at the red-haired girl with the wild curls that beamed at her in the picture. This resemblance...

"Have you ever seen this girl before?" Jane pointed to a photo of the victim.

"Yes, she was here. I'm not allowed to say why, though." He said after a short pause of silence. 

"The reason why we already know, there is more to it- "

"I really have to go now though, my daughter needs me. She was operated on this morning and soon should wake up." Brighter remained friendly and firm. Was he nervous? Jane would say yes. But why? In general, she felt a lot of emotions right now, the room seemed to be flooded with them. Korsak didn't notice anything, she could tell by his dry look.

"We'll still take her to your car." Jane said kindly and Korsak stumbled briefly, but played along.

"Alright." Brighter smiled. Was that hope in his gaze? Jane was now the one supporting her. "If you have any more questions, I'm all yours this afternoon, but now I really need to go." 

Something went wrong. No, that's not how interrogations went... That feeling again.

"Yes, I'd love to." 

The car was just across the street. Jane immediately noticed the broken light. He said goodbye and drove away. 

“Something is off…” Korsak approached her and at that moment, Jane's phone rang.

It was Maura. It was about the tweezers. The medical tweezers...

"Thanks, we already have the culprit." Jane muttered as she watched the car drive away. Brighton's daughter had a heart condition. Was it this circumstance that had sent him off the rails a year ago? 


	13. Chapter 13

Brighter sat quietly. 

He did not care about the handcuffs. 

He had made it, albeit in a roundabout way, and when he saw that his daughter had survived the operation well, he allowed himself to be taken away without resistance.

"Why did they do that?" 

"What would they have done to save their favorite person? They would have done anything." His voice was firm and determined. "I'm not a monster, what happened to those girls..."

"That's hard to believe considering what you did to them." Said Korsak dryly.

"I made it quick. T-they didn't suffer. Neither of them did."

"Then why this big spectacle in the hotel?" Jane braced herself on the table and looked him straight in the eye.

"M-I had no choice, because..." 

... and so he began to tell.

  
  


_ It had been a few weeks ago. He had just taken another call from the hospital and hung up, crushed. Charlotte was getting worse again. As he had already seen coming, she did not have much time left. And a donor was not in sight. Ugh. _

_ Her friendly smile with which she greeted him every day when he came by. He adored her, his little angel. _

_ Just then he slumped in his chair when there was a gentle knock and his receptionist poked his head through the door. _

_ A young girl had spontaneously come by. He would have sent her away, but when he saw her curly hair for a second through the slightly open door, he could not help but treat her after all. _

_ She and her friend were very quiet. He asked no questions; undertook the routine examinations. His heart sped up at the mere thought that this girl might be the solution.  _

_ He had seen so many deaths. So much suffering. And a single thought popped up in his mind… a single murder, what would that be in exchange for... ? He shuddered even at the thought. How could he? _

_ The girl had not suffered any serious injuries. So he sent her home, but his eyes were to remain permanently fixed on her from that moment on. _

_ Days later he got the results. She fit as a donor and so the deadly plan he had devised manifested itself further. _

_ When she ran away then, it was formally an invitation for him. He followed her and waited until it was quiet. This turned out to be more difficult than expected, since there was a higher fluctuation in the room that evening. Brighter waited until her girlfriend had left, then he crept to the window and gained access. Everything was dark, but Leda saw him immediately. She almost made a sound when he cut her quickly with a single cut. He carefully pulled her towards the bathroom and rinsed away the blood. He would never forget how the red flowed down the drain. The smell. So concentrated. _

_ Back in the sleeping area, he removed the heart, moved it to the cooler he was carrying and placed the body in the bed.  _

_ The car was quickly started and the gear engaged. Goosebumps covered his body. What had he done? Disgust. _

_ Anyway... No! _

_ Not important... Yes it is! _

_ Damn... Yes! _

_ Inside he was torn as the container drove to the hospital. Lying about the origin of the transplant, his good reputation, nothing stood in his way anymore. _

_ He thought. _

_ But... _

_...the power outage also paralyzed the hospital and it took awhile for the barely needed generator to kick in. _

_ Too late. _

_ His search could not have an end. So he  _ prepared  _ the crime scene so that one had to conclude on someone else. He needed more time. _


	14. Chapter 14

"Who would have thought that Jefferson's heart would have been the perfect donation?" Jane took a seat at Maura's table and enjoyed the freshly poured beer that her friend had handed her. "You're the best." She saluted and took a sip.

"What would you have done?" Maura's question was sudden and unexpected. 

"I-I..um..." But before Jane could answer, Maura stepped behind her and embraced her in the most tender way she was able.

"I remember very well that night. You confessed your love to me and I can only return it." Maura turned Jane's head toward her. "What evildoer could possibly take on us? I think..."

"...we are unbeatable." Jane pressed her lips against Maura's. Strawberry. Why wasn't she surprised? 

THE END

_ (Or maybe just the beginning) _


End file.
